Sancta Nominahttps://sanctanomina.net
Thoughts on Catholic baby naming
Tue, 19 Feb 2019 15:21:20 +0000 en
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1 http://wordpress.com/https://sanctanomina.files.wordpress.com/2017/07/cropped-rose1.jpg?w=32Sancta Nominahttps://sanctanomina.net
3232Check out Radiant Mercy magazine!https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/19/check-out-radiant-mercy-magazine/
https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/19/check-out-radiant-mercy-magazine/#respondTue, 19 Feb 2019 15:14:38 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28241Continue reading Check out Radiant Mercy magazine!]]>Do any of you subscribe to the lovely Radiant Magazine? If so, you’ll find me in the current issue! There are other wonderful articles in there as well, but one of my favorites is about Sr. Faustina Maria Pia, a Sister of Life who’s also a twin — you’ll have to read to see what her sister’s name is! A beautiful magazine altogether, and I’m honored to be included in it!

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!

]]>https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/19/check-out-radiant-mercy-magazine/feed/0sanctanominaimage1 (8)Birth announcement: Ev@nd3r H@wth0rn!https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/11/birth-announcement-evnd3r-hwth0rn/
https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/11/birth-announcement-evnd3r-hwth0rn/#commentsTue, 12 Feb 2019 02:19:19 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28232Continue reading Birth announcement: Ev@nd3r H@wth0rn!]]>I asked for prayers last spring for a newly pregnant mama who was going through a hard time. You all were so wonderful that she wanted to be sure to share her baby’s birth announcement — she and her husband welcomed a baby boy given the strong, amazing name … Ev@nd3r H@wth0rn! (Alt characters used for privacy, at the mom’s request.)

She writes,

“Thank you to you and your readers for your prayers last year when we were first expecting our son. The Lord has since provided in amazing ways, and we’re in love with these sweet children more each day …

While [older daughter] H3rmi0ne was a whirlwind born into a calm that followed the chaos of Hurricane Harvey, Ev@nd3r has been a calm within the chaos of our personal hurricane — the move into our first home and the growth of our freelance careers. As such, his name is likewise strong but accessible.

Ev@nd3r H@wth0rn is a name that my husband and I discussed long before our marriage but which felt almost too distinguished for a tiny human. But as we’ve delved into the names, we’ve learned to love the combination for our son more and more.

Ev@nd3r was a mythological figure credited with introducing the Greek alphabet, arts, law, and some of the pantheon. As a Hellenophile that’s studied much Greek literature, I feel a personal affinity for the contrast between the eloquence that can be achieved through the written word and the simplicity of the name’s actual meaning: “good man.” Similarly, our son will have the option to use his robust name in full or one of its approachable nicknames, like Van and Evan.

As for Hawthorn … I was taken with the knowledge that there are two Marian titles that roughly translate to “Our Lady of Hawthorns.” October is a solemn month for our family — one that saw the passing of my sister and grandfather and should have seen the birth of my sister-in-law — and as such, I’ve been contemplating life and loss and the love that is threaded through both. I began to think, “What a way to honor those we’ve loved … by honoring the mother of our Lord, who suffered the same.” However tangential the nominal relationship may be, I hope it reminds our son of the protection and love he can expect both from his earthly and heavenly parents.

Lastly, Ev@nd3r H@wth0rn can be summed up as a name combination that, like his sister’s, incorporates Greek, literary, natural, and spiritual elements. May those meanings and those we’ve yet to discover be a source of comfort and guidance to him through his life.”

What an amazing name story!! I love the reasoning behind both the first and middle name choices (that middle name is in my book!), as well as the “approachable nicknames” (love that!) Van and Evan. A perfectly handsome name!!

“Born during the aftermath of our city’s worst storm yet, many family and friends joked that we should name our daughter Harvey or some feminine derivative of the name. Instead, H3rmi0ne is named for two other forces of nature: the saint, whose steadfast faith and strength evangelized better than words ever could, and the witch, whose courage and cleverness was integral to her friends’ survival and to the advancement of others’ welfare. (Our girl was also born shortly after both the epilogue of the Harry Potter books, 9/1/17, and St. Hermione’s feast day, 9/4.) Additionally, it makes my literary heart happy that Helen of Troy’s daughter and Shakespeare’s queen in The Winter’s Tale share the name.

Our preferred nicknames are Hero and Minnie — the former another literary name (again, via mythology and Shakespeare) with aspirational connotations, the latter reminiscent of the mouse and one of my childhood nicknames, Tiny. I also like that there are other options, like Maya, that our daughter can use should she find them more suitable. (We intend to use nicknames interchangeably with her given name.)

El0w3n is a Cornish word name for an elm tree. While elms don’t have particular significance to us, we love the sound, connection to nature, and similarity in sound to Tolkien’s Arwen and Eowyn. I also hope that, like a tree, she has deeply rooted beliefs but that she’s fearless in branching upward and outward.”

These parents have chosen such wonderful, meaningful names for their children! I loved reading all this info!

Congratulations to the whole family, and happy birthday Baby Ev@nd3r!!

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!

]]>https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/11/birth-announcement-evnd3r-hwth0rn/feed/1sanctanominaBirth announcement: Greer Eileen!https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/04/birth-announcement-greer-eileen/
https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/04/birth-announcement-greer-eileen/#respondTue, 05 Feb 2019 02:23:05 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28234Continue reading Birth announcement: Greer Eileen!]]>I posted a consultation for Megan and her husband’s little green bean last year, and I’m delighted to share that they welcomed a little girl! They gave her the fantastic name … Greer Eileen!

Megan writes,

“Since you so kindly did a consultation for us earlier this year, I wanted to make sure to send you an email and update you on what we ended up choosing for her name: Greer Eileen.

I loved your suggestion of Greer — it fit perfectly with our naming style. I was also glad that it had the saintly connection through Gregor/Gregory. When I was pregnant with my son, I remember seeing this name in a book and thinking that I liked it (for a girl), but then forgot about it until you brought it back to my attention. As soon as I saw it again I knew that I loved it. My husband took a little convincing, but once he warmed up to the name he was totally on board as well. It seems to be one of those names that you either love or don’t.

I realize that by using Eileen as the middle, we look like huge Greer Garson fans — in reality, we’ve never seen one of her films. Maybe I should. Her initials spell “Gee” which I thought could maybe be a cute nickname when she’s little if it fits.

Thank you so much for your help, and spot on suggestion! We love our little Greer, and are feeling very blessed.”

How great is this?? I LOVE the name Greer, it’s one of my very favorites, and it’s gorgeous paired with Eileen. I’m so thrilled!

Congratulations to Megan and her husband and big brother Finnian Daniel, and happy birthday Baby Greer!!

Greer Eileen

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!

]]>https://sanctanomina.net/2019/02/04/birth-announcement-greer-eileen/feed/0sanctanominaIMG_1971Birth announcement: Michael Dominic!https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/28/birth-announcement-michael-dominic/
https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/28/birth-announcement-michael-dominic/#commentsTue, 29 Jan 2019 02:22:13 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28223Continue reading Birth announcement: Michael Dominic!]]>I posted a consultation for Vanessa and her husband two years ago this month, when they were hoping to add to their family via adoption. Vanessa let me know that they were able to bring home a long-hoped-for baby this past summer — a boy! They gave him the saintly, handsome name … Michael Dominic!

Vanessa writes,

“This email is a long time coming…I don’t know where the last few months have gone! On July 6, our sweet Michael Dominic came home to us. We are grateful and overjoyed to have a new baby in the house — thanks be to God! So how did we decide on the name?

We ended up throwing out some of our ‘rules’ as his name seemed to ‘just happen.’ Rule #1 — a name that cannot nickname easily — Michael almost immediately becomes Mike at some point in life to most Michael’s but we’ll just call him Michael within the family and hope we can keep it going. As he gets older, I guess he’ll decide! We loved the link to St. Michael the Archangel and we pray that prayer daily. It turns out St. Michael the Archangel is the patron saint of the sick and we learned that AFTER we decided on his name. This seemed appropriate & affirmed the name to us because Michael was born with a significant kidney issue that will need to be followed and could potentially lead to a kidney transplant. For now, Michael is doing well and we’re grateful for that but any prayers your readers could spare would be greatly appreciated!

Also, Michael was a name that originally we’d only considered as a middle name, if at all. But for some reason for THIS child, Michael was the first name that came into my mind when I got the first call from our social worker. When I told my husband about the call, he immediately said, “Maybe this baby should be Michael David” (his name is David!). After a few days of thinking about that name, he suggested Michael Dominic — since we love the rosary and St. Dominic was entrusted with the rosary by Our Lady… it seemed to just fit. Plus as my husband said, “I think he should have his own name.”

I also thought Michael flowed well with Nicholas, John, Mark and Mary. I especially love that the last three children begin with M! Not sure why, but it fits for me!!

So it stuck. Once we thought about it a few days (and this seems to happen to us with each child), we couldn’t get excited about any other name. And we only had 10 days from that first call until the day he came home! Our other children were absolutely thrilled to have a new baby. We waited to tell them until the night before and they nearly didn’t go to sleep! We all drove together to pick him up and it was a beautiful and memorable day.

On another note, our 4 other children loved the name Dominic and even called him Dominic for the first week or two. It was funny because many of our friends and neighbors were confused about what his name was! When they’d speak to our children, they’d refer to him as Dominic! We didn’t correct the children and we knew they’d eventually get it right — of course they did! I wonder if you or any of your readers have had any situations like that!“

I loved every detail of this story! Doesn’t Vanessa’s joy just flow out of her email? I love the combo Michael Dominic and all the significance it has for Vanessa and her hubs!

I’m interested, too, in Vanessa’s question: whether or not any of you have had the experience of your other children calling the baby by a different name than the intended call name? The only experience we had that was sort of similar is when we intended the baby to be called exclusively by a nickname, but the older boys called him by his first name for a while after birth. I’d love to hear about your experiences with this!

Please also keep Michael in your prayers, in regards to his kidney issue.

]]>https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/28/birth-announcement-michael-dominic/feed/3sanctanomina20180706_192002Birth announcement: Felicity Victoria Kathleen!https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/24/birth-announcement-felicity-victoria-kathleen/
https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/24/birth-announcement-felicity-victoria-kathleen/#commentsFri, 25 Jan 2019 01:32:04 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28219Continue reading Birth announcement: Felicity Victoria Kathleen!]]>I posted a consultation for Lea back in May for her little green bean (=gender unknown), her fourth baby on earth. I’m delighted to announce that Lea and her husband welcomed a baby girl, a little sister for three big brothers! They gave her the gorgeous name … Felicity Victoria Kathleen!

Lea writes,

“We had our little baby yesterday, a baby girl that we named Felicity Victoria Kathleen! Thanks for suggesting Felicity, we love it! Victoria and Kathleen are our mother’s names, and we wanted to use them both as we’ve no idea if we’ll ever be able to name another girl. We are all doing well, and Felicity’s big brothers are delighted.”

Aren’t you just so swoony over that name?? Felicity Victoria Kathleen is stunning! I love that both grandmothers are represented, and that Felicity has the kind of significant meaning Lea and her husband were hoping for.

]]>https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/24/birth-announcement-felicity-victoria-kathleen/feed/2sanctanominaBirth announcement: Henry James!https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/21/birth-announcement-henry-james/
https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/21/birth-announcement-henry-james/#commentsTue, 22 Jan 2019 02:07:24 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28215Continue reading Birth announcement: Henry James!]]>I’ve been working through emails slowly but surely, and have a bunch of birth announcements to share with you! I’ll try to post a new one every few days or so; first up is a birth announcement for a family whose consultation I posted back in May for their little boy. The mama, Beth, let me know he has arrived and been given the so-handsome name … Henry James!

She writes,

“I wanted to let you know that our little boy was born September 5, weighing 8 lbs 6 oz! It was a strange end to pregnancy with lots of false alarms, but when he finally came (9 days late) he came in a fury- 25 minutes after arriving at the hospital! We finally decided on a name very late in the pregnancy- Henry James! He was very nearly a Samuel Benedict, and we also loved your suggestions of Nicholas and Luke and had them on our final list for a long time. So far he is just Henry with no nicknames (although I do use his full Henry James often), but I’m curious to see how that evolves. I think we’re leaning toward Bl. John Henry Newman as the saintly connection (since I’m a convert I feel that connection strongest), but we’re loving learning about the other Sts. Henry from your post thank you for your beautiful suggestions and your positive points about Henry- I think it’s absolutely perfect!“

(Ohmygosh — he came 25 minutes after arriving at the hospital!! )

I loooove Henry James!! Such a great combo!! And though the theme of their consultation was trying to move away from the English theme they felt their older children’s name conveyed, I can’t imagine a more perfect brother for Charles/Charlie and Catherine/Cate. Wonderful job!!

Congratulations to the whole family, and happy birthday Baby Henry!!

Henry James

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!

]]>https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/21/birth-announcement-henry-james/feed/2sanctanominaCatholicMom articles–December and Januaryhttps://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/18/catholicmom-articles-december-and-january/
https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/18/catholicmom-articles-december-and-january/#respondSat, 19 Jan 2019 02:53:46 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28211Continue reading CatholicMom articles–December and January]]>Happy Friday everyone! I wanted to be sure to share the links to my December and January CatholicMom articles. Enjoy!

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!

]]>https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/18/catholicmom-articles-december-and-january/feed/0sanctanominacatholicmom_screen_shot-december2018.jpgcatholicmom_screen_shot-january2019.jpgYear in review: 2018 (the Year of Big News)https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/01/year-in-review-2018-the-year-of-big-news/
https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/01/year-in-review-2018-the-year-of-big-news/#commentsTue, 01 Jan 2019 18:02:37 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28207Continue reading Year in review: 2018 (the Year of Big News)]]>Happy New Year to you all!! And happy Feast of Mary, Mother of God!!

What a year 2018 was! I’m calling it the Year of Big News because I can’t think of any bigger news than a baby and a book — and I had both in 2018!

Then, my book — my non-baby magnum opus: I can’t think of a greater onomastic honor than to write a book of Marian names, a book for Our Lady. From finally being able to share the news with you all that the book was being published — and by a publisher that has impeccable Marian ties and has published so many authors I admire! — to all the amazing endorsements and reviews I received, to the book signing I did at my local Catholic book shop, to the other ways the names for Our Lady were shared (articles by me [here, here] and others), my foray into the world of I-wrote-a-book-that-got-published has been thrilling. Thank you all for the ideas, inspiration, and encouragement you gave me along the way!

As with past years, I also wanted to share some of the 2018 Sancta Nomina stats with you — even with being mostly absent from here for nearly half the year because of the baby, I’m still pretty pleased with what was accomplished:

What a year! 2019’s got some big shoes to fill! I hope you all have a wonderful New Year’s and Marian feast day (giving birth today? There’s a book for that )!

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!

]]>https://sanctanomina.net/2019/01/01/year-in-review-2018-the-year-of-big-news/feed/4sanctanominaScreenshot_2019-01-01-12-38-38Advent and Christmas nameshttps://sanctanomina.net/2018/12/17/advent-and-christmas-names/
https://sanctanomina.net/2018/12/17/advent-and-christmas-names/#commentsTue, 18 Dec 2018 02:28:52 +0000http://sanctanomina.net/?p=28205Continue reading Advent and Christmas names]]>Christmas Eve is just a week away and my boys are EXCITED! Seeing their wonder and awe is the absolute best.

I’ve done several posts in the past with ideas for Advent and Christmas names, which I wanted to be sure to share here again, in case you have a little one coming any time! Check these out:

If it’s helpful for naming a boy, I’ve always loved the combo Luke Emmanuel for a Christmas baby — if my Luke had been born around now, it would have been a strong contender.

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — a perfect Christmas present for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!

I’ve been posting a bit on Instagram since he was born — it’s such an easy platform that doesn’t require two hands to type! — but I’ve been wanting to post his birth announcement and name story here for those of you not on Instagram, and also to provide more info than an Instagram post allows. (So sorry to those who prefer Twitter, I think I checked it once in the last three months, I hope to jump back in soon!)

So yes, my newest little one is a “he”! Another little boy! A seventh son! Just before the doctor delivered him he said to me and my husband, “Okay, last chance, boy or girl?” and we both said “Boy,” but more, I think, because we’ve never been wrong guessing boy than because we really *knew*. So we weren’t surprised by our little guy! And at the same time, we were. Seven boys!

Mr. Nomina (as one of you hilariously dubbed my husband!) actually agreed to let me post a photo AND the baby’s name on Instagram! It’s with great pleasure that I share the same info here: Introducing Luke Benedict!

Luke is v v skeptical about this new idea of me trying to get something done.

His name likely won’t come as a surprise to those of you who read the consultation Abby did for us — Luke was always a frontrunner (and has been on our list for years), and Benedict was my favorite first-name pick for a while. But funny enough, though we finally agreed on Luke Benedict if we had a boy, neither my husband nor I were totally sold on it until he was actually born. I held out hope until the bitter end that I’d discover some new, unexpected name that would feel exactly right … Hubby said he would be open to last-minute suggestions (which is actually how our no. 6 was named!) and one of my last-ditch efforts was Walsingham (an entry in my book) with the nickname Walt, thinking hubby might like Walt because he loves Stan (he didn’t like Walt, and liked Walsingham even less, though he gave me points for creativity and apologized for being so picky). Hubs had one of his own — he reminded me of Abby’s suggestion of Peter, and I sat with it for a few days, but I’ve always called my boys Sweetie Petey or Stinky Pete, depending , so that really took the name off the table for me.

In the end, we bestowed Luke Benedict upon our boy and the next day my hubs said something like, “You know, I wasn’t totally sure about Luke, but it’s really grown on me” (in the last twenty four hours! Haha!). And I felt the same way! Since his birth, we’ve both marveled several times at what a strong, solid name it is; at how much of a Luke our boy is (even at his young age!); and at how well it goes with our other boys’ names.

But wait — there’s more! I wanted a Marian name for this baby, not only because of course I love Marian names, but also because this baby was born in the same year as my book, so it seemed extra special to do so. And in fact, during one of our name conversations during my pregnancy, Hubs made a point to look through my book for names he’d like, and Luke was his favorite of all of them. Additionally, there have been so many times in my life that I’ve found myself repeating the words of Our Lady’s Magnificat, which is found in the book of Luke: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name” (Luke 1:46–49). This is exactly how I feel about the blessings in my life — I’m so, so grateful and humbled and in awe, and naming my son after the evangelist that included this canticle in his gospel is so meaningful for me.

Speaking of Luke’s gospel, the Bible verse that has always spoken to me as *mine,* as the verse that most guides my life, is Luke 12:48: “Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.” I have been given so much, and I keenly feel the responsibilities that come with such gifts. I love that Luke’s name is a nod to that as well.

As for Benedict, I love it for so many reasons (including that it’s another Marian name! Woo!), but I had a realization late in my pregnancy that cemented it for me as the perfect middle name for the baby: It’s important to me that each of our kids have a family name as either a first or a middle name, and since Luke isn’t one, the middle name would have to serve that purpose. But I was having a hard time finding a family name that would do, and I thought that rather than look through our family tree for a suitable name, why not think about who has been represented in our boys’ names so far and focus on those who haven’t yet been. We’ve covered my grandparents (both sides), my husband’s grandparents (both sides), both my parents, both my husband’s parents, my brothers, my husband’s brother … the only people who hadn’t yet been included were my sisters. Finding one name that included my three sisters was a challenge that I thoroughly enjoyed! I ended up with Benedict for two reasons:

My sisters’ Confirmation names are Bernadette, Bridget, and Anne, and I think it’s reasonable to consider Benedict a combination of all of those, letter-wise. It might seem like a stretch to think so, but once I realized this, it’s all I can see, which I love. I will always tell Luke that his middle name is for his three aunties.

My sisters and I all have Marian names for either a first or a middle, and Benedict fits right in with that.

So that’s the story of our little guy’s naming! I want to thank you all for your patience as well — I’ve received many messages and emails since I went on hiatus from baby name consultations, wondering when I’d be back at it. I’d hoped to reopen them at Christmas, but Luke and I are just not ready yet. I hate to put you off even longer! But this newborn time is so fleeting, and we’ve had some issues with my recovery and Luke’s eating that have made getting back into the swing of things a longer process than I experienced with my other babies. So I’m focused on being patient with myself and enjoying my little guy. I know you all understand, and I thank you for it! I’m going to try to get back into blogging, which will give me a good sense of how much time Luke will allow me to focus on things other than him. (See the skeptical photo above. ) I will certainly post here as soon as I can start consultations again. If you’ve emailed me and are awaiting a response, I’m starting to work through them, but it’s slow going — whew, I have a lot of emails! I’ll get back to you eventually!

Also, I wasn’t able to pull together a piece for my regular monthly spot on CatholicMom.com for September or October, but I did write one for November, which you can read here: Heavenly help and hellos. Mother Mary, St. Anne, St. Rita, and St. Gerard have had my back for a long time!

I hope you’re all having a blessed Advent and looking forward to Christmas with as much joy as we are here in my house!

*I know, Sanctino isn’t grammatically correct, but for my whole pregnancy I’d wanted to come up with a fun little name for my wee babe that tied to the name of the blog, and Sanctino/Sanctina was the best I came up with!

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — a perfect Christmas present for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!